1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns an effervescent foaming article for body cleansing that imparts a pleasant sensory feel to a user""s skin.
2. The Related Art
Classically the process of cleansing skin has employed a surfactant composition. Sometimes an implement has joined the composition. Implements such as sachets serve multi-purposes. One function is as a delivery package for the surfactant. Sachets may also assist in generating foam. They further function as an abrasive assisting in cleansing the skin.
An early example of cleansing pad technology is found in U.S. Pat. No. 1,808,834 (Busch Sr.). A fabric pouch is disclosed surrounding a cleansing composition mainly consisting of calcium and sodium carbonate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,234,442 (Cornelissens) describes a sachet which can consist of a water permeable material filled with an acidic and an alkaline constituent. Adipic, succinic and glutaric acids exemplify the acidic constituent. Sodium bicarbonate and carbonate represent the alkaline ingredient.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,272,393 (Gergely) describes a cleaning article formed of a porous flexible substrate, especially a cellulosic paper, impregnated with detergent and a gas-generating system. The latter is formed by separating an acidic component such as citric acid from a basic component such as sodium carbonate in two separate areas of the substrate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,515,703 (Haq), U.S. Pat. No. 4,600,620 (Lloyd et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,603,069 (Haq et al.) all describe wiping articles impregnated with surfactant. These do not contain any effervescent ingredients.
WO 97/43366 (Askew et al.) reports an effervescent system to improve dispensability of granular laundry detergent powders into wash water of automatic washing machines. Citric acid and bicarbonate combinations are employed to generate effervescence.
Most of the effervescent sachet technology has been directed at the cleaning of fabrics. Some of the publications have referred to personal care applications involving skin or hair. Yet there has been very little elaboration on sachet construction focused on the challenges of personal care applications. Unlike sachets thrown into a washing machine, personal care involves actual hand contact during the effervescent process. Sachets as they billow from the effervescent process fail to hold shape integrity. Under rubbing conditions they assume a nondescript, mushy pliable configuration. Effervescent gases also appear highly constrained to the confining space of the pre-activation dry volume.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a cleansing article such as a sachet which during effervescent activation maintains a relatively constant shape under conditions of rubbing against the skin.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a cleansing article such as a sachet containing an effervescent system activated by contact with water wherein the article is constructed with expandable pocket areas to accommodate billowing from gas generation.
Still a further object of the invention is to provide a cleansing article such as a sachet which imparts a pleasant sensory feel in a user""s hand, especially a toilet bar shape, at a time prior, during and after use against the skin.
It is to be noted that the subsequently described invention is broader than the objects or technical problems it is directed to solve.
A cosmetic article is provided for cleansing body surfaces, the article including:
a sachet having at least one water permeable wall, the sachet being sealed along all its perimeter, at least one pleat formed in at least one wall of the sachet; and
an effervescent cleanser composition positioned within the sachet.
Advantageously, the effervescent cleanser composition is in the form of an anhydrous dry solid having the composition including:
(i) from about 1 to about 80% of an alkaline material;
(ii) from about 0.5 to about 80% of an acid material; and
(iii) from about 0.1 to about 30% of a surfactant.
Also provided is a method for cleansing skin involving wetting with water a cosmetic article, generating foam from the article and wiping skin surfaces with the wetted article, the article being a pleated sachet filled with the effervescent cleanser composition delineated above.